The race is on. But is it the race you think it is?

For a long time, the speed of technological advancement we have observed outside of work has significantly outpaced the kind of technology we have become accustomed to at work, especially in HR!

But like a lot of things right now, that is changing.

And FAST...

This year, some of THE biggest names in tech have entered the race to equip HR with game-changing solutions that allow us to completely re-imagine how work get's done.

But whilst the emergence of new players in the HR & Workplace technology market will undoubtedly spark even greater technical innovation in the industry, the day-to-day operational complexities of deploying these solutions successfully remains a very human challenge.

Why?...

Well... technology has never just been about the technology itself...it is ultimately about people.

Yes, #hrtechnology now has the potential to enable HR to revolutionise the experience of work, but only if we can take employees on the journey with us.

It’s a marathon, not a sprint.

Over the last 12 months, we have all individually and collectively played our part in the race toward our digital future. Whether it was adapting quickly to new collaborative working platforms we had never used before, or acquiring a completely new skillset that allowed us to perform our roles in a more digitally enabled way.

As lockdown restrictions begin to ease, and work environments become increasingly fluid, perhaps the biggest challenge for HR now is how to sustain the digital momentum and embed the kind of digital adaptability we’ve seen over the last year?

To do this, HR will need to create feedback mechanisms that provide a deep understanding of what employee's want and work to continuously innovate experiences that inspire top talent to perform at their best.

Work has changed and so have our technology expectations.

Recent research conducted by Workfront in their 2021 State of Work report provides some telling insight on just how much employee expectations have evolved during the pandemic, with nearly half of UK workers now stating they are likely to leave their current job if they are frustrated with their work technology.

That's massive, and underlines the need for HR to champion our ongoing digital evolution, or risk losing the "war for talent".

HR has arguably the best opportunity it's ever had to lead digital transformation. And with it's distinctive vantage point across the business why not?

HR is ideally placed to help align people, purpose and technology in a sustainable human-centric way that enables the business to take on the challenges we face in the new era of work.